U.S. President Donald Trump, long celebrated for portraying himself as a peacemaker, has in recent weeks ordered large-scale military operations against Iran, leaving analysts and supporters questioning his self-proclaimed “President of Peace” persona.
During a late-night television appearance on 28 February, a clip from 2011 was aired in which Trump, then a businessman, warned that President Barack Obama “will start a war with Iran because he has absolutely no ability to negotiate.”
Fifteen years later, Trump now appears to have embraced the very path he once criticised, authorising strikes against Tehran following unsuccessful negotiations with Iran.
Reuters cited today that despite his repeated declarations of being a peacemaker, boasting of his dealmaking skills and lamenting missing out on the Nobel Peace Prize, the president has demonstrated a readiness to engage in conflict.
His political rise in 2016 was partly driven by a rejection of costly foreign wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and on the 2024 campaign trail he emphasised that he had initiated “no new wars.”
Upon his return to the White House, he criticised “so-called nation-builders” who “wrecked far more nations than they built.”
In line with his peace-oriented image, Trump inaugurated the first meeting of his “Board of Peace” in early 2026—a body originally intended to uphold the Gaza ceasefire that has evolved into a platform including several authoritarian figures.
When the Nobel Peace Prize eluded him, he accepted a specially created award from FIFA, highlighting his desire for recognition as a global peacemaker.
Yet in the second year of his second term, Trump has appeared equally comfortable commanding military campaigns.
Within two months, he oversaw operations that removed Venezuela’s president and resulted in the death of Iran’s supreme leader.
Analysts such as former Bush administration diplomat Richard Haass described the sudden shift as “a major surprise,” noting that Washington had previously shown little interest in regime change or democracy promotion abroad.
A lifelong scion of a property empire who avoided the Vietnam draft, Trump has long displayed an affinity for military symbolism, frequently surrounding himself with armed forces personnel, touring military installations, and highlighting US military strength.
He has touted the expansion of America’s fighting capabilities, including new battleships criticised as vulnerable to modern missile technology, and emphasised his authority over the military.
Speaking in January while welcoming the Florida Panthers ice hockey team to the White House, he joked about envying the players’ good looks but added, “But I got power too, it’s called the United States military.”
Trump’s aggressive foreign policy has already provoked domestic debate. On 1 March, the first US service members were reported killed in action against Iran.
A Reuters/Ipsos poll the same day showed only one in four Americans approved of the strikes, while 43 per cent disapproved.
Analysts warn that the attacks, combined with rising oil prices, could influence November’s midterm elections, particularly the Republican Party’s hold on the House of Representatives, and challenge Mr Trump’s base.
Former MAGA figure Marjorie Taylor Greene, who split from Mr Trump in 2025, dismissed the Iran attack as “a lie,” highlighting potential fractures among staunch supporters as the president’s “peaceful” image clashes with his recent military interventions. - March 2, 2026
